AVS Forum banner

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX8 Owners Thread

6K views 56 replies 10 participants last post by  bsprague 
#1 ·
I decided to start a topic because I'm trolling to see if anyone shows up that is shooting 4K video with the new GX8.

I think this may be my next camera. It will fit in with gear I already own for shooting wildlife with a long lens and it is compact enough for travel. I have and enjoy the GX7, but it does not do 4K nor have a mic input.

I could put up a clip of a bull elk last summer at Yellowstone for an example of what I want to do, but it is soooo 1080p it wouldn't look good here anymore.

Bill
 
#4 ·
I'm interested in the GX8 for video and stills. I have been waiting to see if there will be any better deals as we approach Black Friday. Aside from some used on Amazon and grey market, best so far is the GX8 plus the new 25mm 1.7 for $1150.
 
#5 ·
Coming will be a choice between the Panasonic 100-400 and the Olympus 300. The very affordable 100-300 has had less than the best reviews due to slow auto focus and perceived softness. When I've shot at Yellowstone I've focused manually and tried to keep the zoom to no higher than 250. It works pretty good. Spending money on "better" is always fun.

Recent stories in the rumor mill said that Olympus delayed the 300 to add in lens stabilization just for Panasonic owners. Wildlife video shooters have been limited to some pretty expensive gear. When you line up along the road at Yellowstone when a bear, wolf, fox, etc shows up, the equipment is predominately HUGE Nikon and Canon gear.

I've enjoy my very cheap by comparison GX7 and the Panasonic 100-300 for 1080p. I do want 4K next and think the GX8 combination of size and features will suit my habits better than the GH4. Even if there is a GH5 coming I suspect it will be physically bigger than I want.
 
#14 ·
#15 ·
Years ago the GX was the photogs' camera, and the G was videographer's camera, right? Now the GX8 has 4K video, and the G is weather-sealed, am I right? What is the difference now? Number of still shots per second? Or the sturdiness of the body?

Considering that the FZ300 is $600 (even with sale price of $400), it is unlikely to see the G7 for $500 kitted with lens.
 
#16 · (Edited)
Years ago the GX was the photogs' camera, and the G was videographer's camera, right? Now the GX8 has 4K video, and the G is weather-sealed, am I right? What is the difference now? Number of still shots per second? Or the sturdiness of the body?
GX8 is better build (magnesium alloy vs. G7 plastic), in-body image stabilization coupled with certain lenses, weather-sealed (G7 not), larger 20 MP sensor (G7 16MP)/higher rez photos, better viewfinder magnification, NFC.
G7 advantage has the internal flash for stills.

If the G7 is anything like the G6, the buttons may be more mushy instead of clicky.

Like Bill, I picked up an LX100...which takes great video...4K/15-minute is not bad, but makes 2 files that can't be joined seamlessly. G7/GX8 doesn't have that.

I probably should focus on mastering the LX100 and not look for other cams.
 
#21 · (Edited)
If I had a GX8 instead of GX7, these Elk clips would be in 4K! For now they are in old, ordinary HD. I've got the Lumix 100-300 lens. There is supposed to be a better Lumix 100-400 lens coming in 2016 that will be even better for 4K wildlife video.

The GH4 would work. Since I don't care about the sound, I think the GX8 may be a better, more compact choice.

https://vimeo.com/146185237

It is hard to skip today's sale!
 
#23 ·
Hey guys...I'm looking into this camera for a very specific situation. Our church records a single wall tripod mounted shot for a closeup shot of the pastor...but at 75 feet. We currently use a GH2 with a Rokinon f/1.4 wide open in ETC mode, and we still have noise in the shadows when the pastor wears dark colors (I know...it's very tempting to just tell the man how to dress!). I believe it could be the well documented ISO noise bug that occurs after a power up. The good news is that there are some funds available to upgrade, but not much. I'm wondering if the GX8 with our same lens would be much of an improvement? Also, the GH3 costs less and would otherwise suit all needs...does anyone know if it beats the GX8 in low light due to the lower pixel count? Anybody know if they fixed the noise bug in both of these? I've looked into other brands, but I cannot find a configuration that meets all of our needs, since we MUST have ETC mode (to avoid taking a mortgage on the property for a lens) and we MUST have it continuously record for several hours (we let it roll all morning long since it is not easily accessible). Here's a sample of our shot and noise issue at 75 feet in challenging lighting:
http://www.gccministries.org/mediaPlayer/#sermonvideo/553

Thanks!
 
#29 ·
It was months ago that I started this thread. I'm turning 70! Yesterday my family held a slightly early birthday party for me and my DW gave me a GX8 and a 100-400 lens! I'm thrilled and anxious to try shooting some wildlife!

The RX10iii has been a less costly distraction, but for my narrow purpose I think this is going to do more of what I want.

I'm sure there will be flaws. Nothing matches the $15,000 full frame Nikon and Canon rigs you see along the road at Yellowstone. This does have a similar or better field of view. I am getting some things I didn't have:

4K video
Weather sealing
Dual or 5 axis stabilization
A mic input
A very long and sharp telephoto lens.

Should be fun!

Bill
 
#32 ·
Finding wildlife is a lot about luck. I got some this week in British Columbia. A nearby Eagle had intruded on some territory claimed by smaller birds. They wanted the Eagle to leave and were attacking while I shot.

I've updated the firmware for both the camera and lens. Dual image stabilization is a feature for this camera and lens combination. The last clip is handheld while leaning on the hood of our RV. The rest of the clips are with the camera on a tripod.

https://vimeo.com/174030195

Bill
 
#33 ·
Finding wildlife is a lot about luck. I got some this week in British Columbia. A nearby Eagle had intruded on some territory claimed by smaller birds. They wanted the Eagle to leave and were attacking while I shot.

I've updated the firmware for both the camera and lens. Dual image stabilization is a feature for this camera and lens combination. The last clip is handheld while leaning on the hood of our RV. The rest of the clips are with the camera on a tripod.

Bill
This was very interesting. But I liked "Transitions" much better - brilliant.
 
#35 ·
The handheld shot is very good considering it is a shot at an equivalent of 800mm focal length (400mm x crop factor of 2). When I shot with my Sony HX400V at 1200mm I never managed to get footage as close to the stability of that handheld. The best I could do was around 600mm, with the Active Steadyshot on, above which the wobbles and jelloes would ruin it.
 
#36 ·
The IS is impressing me. And, for reasons I've not yet figured out, the GX8 shoots 4K video with a boost. The equivalent is closer to 1250mm!

However, I'm not finding the 5 axis stabilization for 4K video that the GX80/85 seems to have. It would be fun to have both the GX8 and GX80 to attach to the 100-400 and see the comparison. But for me, that is not going to happen!
 
#40 ·
It may be confusion on my part with settings, but the GX8 seems to want to shoot with EX TELE CONV on. Lightroom reports that the 35mm equivalent at 400 is 1264mm! Of course I'm surprised, but am still figuring it out. If so, it adds to my purpose of a long reach telephoto kit for wildlife shooting!
 
#43 ·
This forum has been a little slow lately. In the spirit of sharing what can be done in the "real world", I'm posting a video.

I started this thread well over a year ago. Last July I got the GX8 and a long telephoto lens to with it. Slow that I can be, I never considered using it as a "regular use" video camera even though I have a Panasonic 14-140 lens. A couple weeks ago I was using it in Hawaii and realized I was missing something. It works!

The GX8, unlike later Panasonic's, does NOT use the "Dual I.S." when shooting 4K. It is lens only. The 14-140 firmware has been updated twice, so stabilization may have improved. Early on, the 14-140 was criticized for having some video "jitter".

Anyway, the GX8 has a terrific EVF. With it tilted up and the camera held close in, the 14-140 is more stable than anything I've ever used. What a pleasant surprise! I don't see jitter and I don't see the exposure stepping with light changes.

After the Hawaii "discovery" I tried it at a basketball game with all the usual bad lighting and noise. The girl being highlighted is an exchange student from Spain ant the primary purpose of the video is for her parents in Madrid.

The 4K process has become incredibly easy. Shoot, edit, upload to Vimeo for sharing, copy to flash drive, plug into TV and play. Editing is in Premier Elements and output is set to match the source clips. No adjustments, grading or tricks except one. Near the middle I tried a "slow-mo" moment with a freeze frame for the fun of it.

If you have the stuff, you should be able to watch it in 4K (once Vimeo is done processing it).

https://vimeo.com/202262455

Bill
 
#44 ·
In the spirit of sharing what we shoot (on a slow forum day), here is another.

This is a gear forum. Relative to that, the GX8 does 4K, but in 4K uses only the lens stabilization. The lens used is was 14-140, second version with the latest firmware. Historically the lens has been criticized for video jitter. Nor is it fast. The camera was set to Standard, Auto ISO, shutter priority at 1/100th. That is a little fast for video, but I wanted to improve my chances for frameable frame grabs.

The event was really weird. My DW and I are products of the 60's. We thought beauty pageants had become history until our granddaughter signed up for "the scholarship opportunities" of the "Outstanding Teen" competition. This event was the entry level for the road to Miss America! Really! Older girls were in a parallel competition leading to "Miss Washington". There was a short swimsuit parade but I was encouraged to leave my camera alone.

Everything about the shoot was terrible. There was weird light, bad sound, no idea what was next and no control over shooting position. Tripods, monopods or other devices were in appropriate.

There was a hired pro with a Panasonic HC-X1, complete with external monitor, audio feed from the sound board and a huge tripod. It was worth a drool, but don't think I'll be shopping for one. It is too big!

Editing was done, as usual, in Premier Elements with only a couple "tricks" and no color grading.

FWIW, this is one of the granddaughters that talked me into buying a camcorder when she was in the middle of grade school. Anyway, enjoy what a favorite camera does in a real world challenge!

https://vimeo.com/205992593
 
#46 · (Edited)
In the spirit of sharing what we shoot (on a slow forum day), here is another.

This is a gear forum. Relative to that, the GX8 does 4K, but in 4K uses only the lens stabilization. The lens used is was 14-140, second version with the latest firmware. Historically the lens has been criticized for video jitter. Nor is it fast. The camera was set to Standard, Auto ISO, shutter priority at 1/100th. That is a little fast for video, but I wanted to improve my chances for frameable frame grabs.

The event was really weird. My DW and I are products of the 60's. We thought beauty pageants had become history until our granddaughter signed up for "the scholarship opportunities" of the "Outstanding Teen" competition. This event was the entry level for the road to Miss America! Really! Older girls were in a parallel competition leading to "Miss Washington". There was a short swimsuit parade but I was encouraged to leave my camera alone.

Everything about the shoot was terrible. There was weird light, bad sound, no idea what was next and no control over shooting position. Tripods, monopods or other devices were in appropriate.

There was a hired pro with a Panasonic HC-X1, complete with external monitor, audio feed from the sound board and a huge tripod. It was worth a drool, but don't think I'll be shopping for one. It is too big!

Editing was done, as usual, in Premier Elements with only a couple "tricks" and no color grading.

FWIW, this is one of the granddaughters that talked me into buying a camcorder when she was in the middle of grade school. Anyway, enjoy what a favorite camera does in a real world challenge!
Excellent color and exposure, especially given all the spotlighting. I know how difficult it is to shoot a live event especially when you do not know what to fully expect (like the movements of the subjects), but the panning and framing were excellent.

And good editing, giving just quick excerpts from various performances (except your main one). Pretty stable too, considering you do not have the cutting-edge IBIS, and the sound was fine.

The abrupt stop to the music at the end is a bit awkward. Perhaps a fade out of the sound before the credits or, better, a continuation of the music (or applause) during the "credits" and then a fade of everything. Of course, I did miss having a Matyas wood or stone backdrop at the end, which would have made what you did look so much more professional. :rolleyes:
 
#45 · (Edited)
Nice Bill...and she was one of the winners!

Considering your environment, the colors were quite nice as was the detail, but one suggestion. It appeared you shot from a fair distance away. Considering that your distance to the subject never really changed, and almost all movements on stage were lateral, you might have been better off with either MF or Auto Focus Lock once correct focus was attained.
 
#47 ·
Thanks for watching.

I was a long distance away. It was not by choice! I got to sit where I was invited to sit!

What I've been trying to do is lock the focus with autofocus. In video mode the primary shutter button is the video button. A half press should lock the focus then a full press starts the recording. I have Continous Focus off and the focus lever is set to AFF. Video setting are saved to C2. My thought is that if I need to refocus during a clip, another half press will get it right.

Since you asked, at this very moment, I checked and discovered Continuous AF is on. It WAS off before I switched to C2 in the dark theater! No wonder it was hunting. Crap, but thanks for causing me to look!

I presume the menus on your G85 are about the same. How do you have the AF setup for video?

Bill
 
#49 ·
Lots of Sea Lions

The GX8 is not the GH5, but what the ... Every GH5 buyer should buy the Lumix/Leica 100-400 if they ever wonder outdoors!!!

I got this clip and decided to put in on Vimeo as original. No editing, no nothing. It is straight out of camera. It is using the most expensive lens I've ever owned and is 4K handheld! The GX8 won't do Dual IS in 4K. So, this is lens only stabilization.

Enjoy if you like the craziness of seals. The ones with their heads in the air are the boys who think they can guard their harem by "watching" for intruders.

https://vimeo.com/212998352
 
#50 ·
The GX8 is not the GH5, but what the ... Every GH5 buyer should buy the Lumix/Leica 100-400 if they ever wonder outdoors!!!

I got this clip and decided to put in on Vimeo as original. No editing, no nothing. It is straight out of camera. It is using the most expensive lens I've ever owned and is 4K handheld! The GX8 won't do Dual IS in 4K. So, this is lens only stabilization.

Enjoy if you like the craziness of seals. The ones with their heads in the air are the boys who think they can guard their harem by "watching" for intruders.

https://vimeo.com/212998352
This also qualifies as a good soundtrack! Nice effective pan (but your book said no panning, right?).
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top